California students are less fit than they were in 2014, although they’re marginally in better shape than five years ago, according to tests released by the state Department of Education.
Statewide, the percentage of students who met all six of the state’s fitness goals declined half a percentage point or less. Yet, only 26.4 percent of fifth-graders, 32.5 percent of seventh-graders and 37.6 percent of ninth-graders, the only grades tested, were declared fit.
In local counties, students generally performed in line with or slightly below their statewide peers. Lakeport Unified School District’s ninth-graders exceeded the state mark, with 39.5 percent meeting all six goals. Middletown Unified’s fifth and seventh-graders also bettered state marks, at 33.1 percent and 40.6 percent, respectively.
Results varied widely by school and district. In the Middletown district, for instance, almost 36 percent of ninth-graders tested as fit, while in Konocti Unified the figure reached just 28.1 percent. In the Kelseyville school district only 16.7 percent of fifth-graders met the standards, but that figure jumped to 30.8 percent for seventh-graders.
The Department of Education and state schools Superintendent Tom Torlakson did not offer an explanation for the decline in state fitness scores.
In a prepared release Torlakson called the results “a good reminder that all parents and role models need to encourage children to eat nutritious foods and exercise regularly.”
More than 1.3 million students last winter and spring took the tests, which measured aerobic capacity, abdominal strength, upper body strength, trunk strength and flexibility. Students’ body fat also was measured.
Mastery of the tasks are intended to show that students are fit enough to protect themselves against diseases associated with sedentary living. The state has measured students’ fitness for nearly 50 years, with the current test in its 16th year.
Even with the declining numbers, encouraging news was embedded in the results.
Fifth- and seventh-graders improved in aerobic capacity, with 63.5 percent of fifth-graders and 65.4 percent of seventh-graders meeting targets. Ninth-graders, however, declined marginally, to 63.8 percent meeting aerobic targets.
In almost all districts, fitness seems to improve with age. Across the county, 18.7 percent of fifth-graders registered as fit, improving to 25.2 percent by seventh-grade and 32.7 percent for ninth-graders.
